


The Bet

by emiv



Series: Companion Pieces to The Longer You Stay [6]
Category: Batman (Comics), Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Genre: Adoption, F/M, Family, Gen, Nolanverse!Robins, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-19
Updated: 2014-03-19
Packaged: 2018-01-16 07:59:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1337974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emiv/pseuds/emiv
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her children needed better hobbies.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Bet

“Come on, Little D, you can do it,” Selina overheard Dick say as she passed through the hallway. “Dick. _Dick_.” 

She quirked an eyebrow and peaked around the corner. Dick sat on the floor of the family room, attempting to pull Damian’s attention away from his toys.

The kid should have known by now that keeping a fourteen-month-old away from his toys was a lost cause.

“Dick,” he repeated, leaning his face close to Damian’s. The toddler stared back, scrunching his nose. “Say _Dick_.” 

Damian blinked, smiled and smacked him in the face.

“Ow,” Dick said, rubbing his cheek. Damian giggled, toddling away toward his scattered pile of blocks. A soft snort of laughter came from the depths of the couch.

“Serves you right,” Selina heard Jason chime in. “Do you really think _that_ should be his first word?” 

“Oh, it will be,” Dick replied with a grin, even as a little red handprint blossomed on his cheek. “I’m his favorite.”

“Please, that kid adores me.” Jason peaked his head over the arm of the couch. “Isn’t that right, squirt?”

Damian answered with a flying block. Jason ducked back down.

“His first word will be _Dick_ ,” Dick said. “You’ll see.”

“Ten bucks says it’s _Jason_.”

“You’re on.”

Selina shook her head.

Her children needed better hobbies.

 

* * *

 

“Just say ‘Jay,’ kid, and I’ll give you all the bananas you can eat.”

Selina should have known this would escalate.

In the kitchen, Damian struggled against the straps of his high chair, kicking his feet in frustration. He reached out with grasping hands toward Jason, who held a chunk of banana just out of his reach.

Selina cleared her throat. Jason didn’t flinch.

“I got money riding on this, S.” He didn’t even bother looking back, the brat.

“Jason.”

“See?” he said to Damian. “Say it just like that. _JAY-SUN_.” Damian caught her eye over Jason’s head, his own brown eyes wide, lower lip pushed out, little face starting to crumble.

“ _Jason_ ,” Selina repeated. There was a long pause before he finally sighed, shoulders lowering in defeat.

“ _Fine._ ” Jason dropped the sticky banana chunk into the tray in front of Damian and wiped his hand on his pants. “But you’re making this harder than it has to be.”

Selina snickered. In his highchair, Damian sniffed, grabbing for the banana. Once it was in hand, he broke into a grin, gleefully mashing it between his fingers, pushing the smushed bits into his mouth.

Jason fell into the empty chair beside him with a huff. He pursed his lips, staring at Damian as he ate. Selina could see the gears turning in Jason’s head.

With a final roll of her eyes, Selina left the kitchen.

 

* * *

 

A few nights later, Selina was making a final pass by the boy’s rooms when she saw a dim light coming from the nursery. She wandered over, stopping at the door. Inside, Tim stood on his tiptoes, his dark head peeking over the edge of Damian’s crib. His voice was faint, but Selina could just hear him.

He was _singing._

From his crib, Damian blinked up at his older brother with sleepy eyes, making a face Selina could only describe as skeptical. She lingered in the doorway, listening to Tim’s soft rendition of _Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star_. It was sweet. And a little weird.

That’s when she caught it.

The tune was _Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star_ , but Tim’s version was made up of a single word.

His own name. Over and over again.

“You too, kid?” she whispered.

Tim turned to look at her, blue eyes shining in the dim room. He shrugged.

“Twenty bucks is twenty bucks,” he whispered before turning back, starting his song from the top.

 

* * *

 

“Our children have gone ‘round the bend.”

“Quite a while ago, yes,” Bruce replied. Selina snickered, nudging his feet over as she sat on the foot of their bed.

“They’re placing bets on Damian's first word,” she told him, rubbing her temples.

“Hmmm.” He looked less than surprised.

_Suspiciously_ less than surprised.

“It’s up to twenty now,” she added, watching his face.

“Twenty-five,” Bruce corrected. Selina narrowed her eyes.

“And how do you know that?”

Bruce blinked, glancing up from his tablet screen.

“I may have a piece of that action.”

He neatly ducked the pillow she threw in his direction.

 

* * *

 

Over the next two weeks, Selina walked in on all manner of strange behavior. She’d come across Dick, more than once, literally standing on his head, making goofy faces in front of an unimpressed Damian. Jason alternated between bribery and trying to tickle Damian into submission. She’d overheard Tim engaging the toddler in long bouts of one-sided conversation, referring to himself in the third person, repeating his own name as often as possible. Selina had even caught Bruce whispering into Damian’s ear, dark eyes smiling in her direction.

Lunatics, the lot of them.

Despite their best efforts, the most anyone ever got out of Damian was a furrowed brow, babbled, frustrated nonsense and, if they weren’t quick enough, the occasional bite.

But the boys took their licks like champs. Selina knew from experience that once they got an idea in their head’s, there wasn’t much that could be done to stop them. But, seeing as this particular idea didn’t involve anyone climbing up on the roof or setting things on fire, Selina let it slide. She did, however, put her foot down when it came to bath time.

Bath time was quiet time. _Her_ time.

Each night she’d pluck Damian from whatever madness his brothers were subjecting him to and head for the master bathroom. She’d shut the door behind them, letting him splash in the warm, soapy water undisturbed. Selina kept her own talking to a minimum, content to just watch him play in their oversized tub. He didn’t babble much, not when he was with her, but every once in a while, he’d glance up and smile.

_Yeah, kid,_ she thought, rinsing shampoo from his dark, baby-fine hair, _I like it quiet too._

 

* * *

 

The blue light from the TV cast shadows across the walls of the family room. Selina found the boys gathered there, Jason sprawled across one half of the couch, legs swinging over the arm. Dick took up the other half, his socked feet kicked up on the table, Damian snuggling in his lap. Tim sat on the floor, crosslegged, resting his chin on the edge of the coffee table. They were watching that fish movie that had somehow become a mandatory part of Damian's nightly routine. The older boys looked bored but didn’t complain.

When it came to _Nemo_ , even Dick and Jason knew better than to upset the little beast.

Selina walked up behind the couch, about to declare lights out, when Damian caught sight of her over Dick’s shoulder. His round face brightened.

“Mama.”

A chorus of groaning and whining filled the family room. Selina smiled.

_That’s my boy._

“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Jason muttered.

“Guess that’s it,” Tim said with a shrug, turning back to the TV.

“Mama,” Damian repeated, more insistent this time, wiggling against Dick’s arms, reaching for her.

“You know, when you think about it, it’s not all that surprising,” Dick said, grinning as he handed the squirming toddler over to Selina. Selina reached over the back of the couch to pick him up, settling him against her hip. He was warm and snuggly in his footed pajamas; his chubby fingers played with the edge of her sleeve. She nuzzled his cheek before turning back to the couch.

“I guess that means you all lost,” she said.

“Not all of us,” came a voice from the hall. She glanced back to see Bruce standing in the doorway. At the sight of him, the boys began to stir, digging into their pockets for crumpled bills and spare change.

“Keep your money, boys,” Bruce told them as he wandered into the room. “I’m not going to collect.” There was a smug, self-assurance in his walk. “Knowing I won is payment enough.”

“And just how did _you_ win, Mr. Wayne?” she asked, catching a hint of a smile on his lips.

“Simple,” Bruce said, pausing to kiss her forehead. He looked down, met her eyes. “I was betting on you.”

She stared at him, fighting the smile that tugged at the corners of her lips. He held her gaze a second before glancing down at Damian, tapping his nose, making him giggle before turning to leave. Selina shook her head as she watched Bruce walk out of the room. She shifted Damian’s weight on her hip, holding him close enough to whisper against his ear.

_“Dada.”_


End file.
